Domaine Daniel Et Julien Barraud

'La Roche de Vergisson' is hard to miss when driving south from the Côte d'Or to the hamlet of Vergisson. The massive rock looms over the small town like a massive ship's prow. On almost all sides are some of the finest Chardonnay vines in France – in Vergisson that means exclusively Pouilly-Fuissé (Mâcon-Vergisson 'La Roche' being the only exception.) This is the epi-center for intense, mineral driven French Chardonnay.

Location is everything. On a clear day it possible to see Mont Blanc from these rocks. Peaking at 485 meters,, these are the highest altitude vineyards in the entire appellation (which means grapes ripen slowly and retain more acidity in the cooler climate). Everything that is needed to make world-class Chardonnay is found in this town, with all of the vineyards containing about twelve inches of dirt before you hit solid bedrock.

Lying in the shadow of this grand rock, is one of the finest estates in all of Burgundy and unquestionably the master of Vergisson, Domaine Daniel et Julien Barraud. With holdings in the BEST and oldest vineyards in the region, the wines are a PhD level course in world-class Chardonnay.

The viticultural history of the Barraud family began in 1905, when Jean-Marie Barraud first purchased parcels in Vergisson, the highest point in the Mâconnais. Since that time, Daniel Barraud, along with his son Julien and wife Martine (the master of the vines), have turned his family's domaine into THE benchmark producer of the region and a must-have for all Burgundy lovers. The heights reached by this storied producer mandate that they must now be compared to the best of the Côtes d'Or. This is simply white Burgundy at its finest – and most reasonably priced.

Vinous Media 91 "(one-third done in cuve but also got a bit of new oak; this bottling is made from four parcels in Vergisson, one of them lost to hail in 2016): Bright medium yellow. Musky, complex scents of peach, nectarine and citrus fruits show enticing lift. An attractive glyceral midweight

Vinous Media 92-94 "(these vines at about 350 meters face northeast, but the Barrauds have never chaptalized this wine; production here is routinely between 40 and 45 hectoliters per hectare): Pale, bright yellow. Cooler on the nose than the Sûr La Roche, offering precise, vibrant aromas of

Vinous Media 90 "(14.5% alcohol; from 50-year-old vines on rocky soil in Pouilly; two-thirds demi-muids and one-third fûts; from grapes picked on the last day of the harvest): Bright, full medium yellow. Slightly resiny apple and soft citrus fruits on the nose; a touch oxidative today and obviously

Vinous Media 92-94 "(made from the oldest vines of the domain at 80 years of age; the exposition here is north/northwest, bringing cool nights; 30% new oak): Full medium yellow. Superripe, almost honeyed scents of peach, apricot, pineapple and quince. Highly concentrated and powerful but very

Vinous Media 91 "(this is the estate's only Pouilly-Fuissé blend; the rest are from single sites; vinified in fûts and demi-muids, plus 15% cuve; this and the following 2015s had been racked into tanks a week before my visit and were slated to be bottled in November): Full, bright medium yellow.

Wine Advocate 92 "The 2014 Pouilly-Fuissé La Verchere offers one of the most engaging aromatics from Barraud this year, very complex with white flowers, smoke and orange blossom, an underlying mineralité ready to be exposed with bottle age. The palate is extremely well balanced with superb

Allen Meadows 92 "Discreet but not invisible oak influence frames the white and yellow orchard fruit nose that displays background notes of honeysuckle and orange peel. The concentrated medium-bodied flavors possess fine complexity on the intensely mineral-driven and long finish. This is also very

Wine Advocate 90 "The 2012 Pouilly-Fuisse Les Chatagnieres comes from limestone soils: a parcel planted in the 1960s. It was aged in barrels and demi-muids, one of the latter new. It has a very fragrant bouquet with apricot blossom and quince aromas, touches of hazelnut bobbing up later. The palate

Allen Meadows Burghound 91-93 "This is distinctly backwards and tight with plenty of minerality on the explosive and highly energetic middle weight flavors that exude a mouth coating dry extract before culminating in a beautifully long and moderately austere finish that really fans out. Impressive"

Allen Meadows 89-91 "This actually has a similar nose to the Les Pommards with solid concentration and an abundance of dry extract on the seductively textured, lush and fleshy medium weight flavors that possess average depth at present but very fine length. If this can develop more complexity it

Wine Advocate 91 "The 2011 Pouilly-Fuisse La Verchere comes from 50-year-old vines around the house planted on deep limestone soils. It has a lifted bouquet, rather straightjacketed by youth and sure to evolve with 2 or 3 years in bottle. The palate is well-balanced with an effervescent entry:

Wine Advocate 92+ "The 2011 Pouilly-Fuisse En Buland comes from similar soils to Les Crays but from just under the bluff of Solutre. The octogenarian vines are orientated north and therefore the hang time is usually extended further than in other climats. As expected, it offers a mineral-driven

Wine Advocate 93 "The 2011 Pouilly-Fuisse Les Crays, which is located on poor limestone soils above La Verchere, has a precise apricot and grapefruit scented bouquet with flinty notes in the background. The palate is very expressive and intense with vibrant orange zest and white peach notes that

Wine Advocate 92 "The 2011 Pouilly-Fuisse La Roche, from the middle of the escarpment on white limestone soils, has an entrancing bouquet of white peach, apricot blossom, quince and crushed stone that is just succinctly defined and very pure. The palate demonstrates immense clarity and is

Wine Advocate 90 "The 2011 Pouilly-Fuisse En France comes from vines planted in clay-like soils close to the castle in the center of Vergisson. It has a pretty, stony bouquet with hints of limestone and oyster shell that gradually build in the glass, but never become overpowering. The palate is

Wine Advocate 92 "The 2011 Macon-Vergisson La Roche comes from easterly-orientated 30-year-old vines located at 350 meters altitude. Raised in 15% new oak in 300-liter barrels, it has a finely tuned bouquet with delicate touches of smoke, honeysuckle and jasmine that take a little while to find

Allen Meadows Burghound 92 "Mild reduction only reduces the expressiveness rather than blocks the citrus and floral-suffused nose. There is ample richness to the full-bodied yet well-detailed flavors that possess plenty of dry extract that confers a seductive texture to the lemony, balanced and

Allen Meadows Burghound 93 "A notably riper yet still quite fresh and bright nose offers up notes of acacia blossom, stone and white peach. The dense, textured and opulent medium-bodied flavors possess so much extract that this possesses an almost chewy character on the mouth coating and

Allen Meadows Burghound 93 "Wet stone, apricot, peach and pear aromas that are trimmed in subtle wood influence give way to large-bodied flavors that also possess so much extract that they too seem borderline chewy as the hugely long finish really stains the palate. This is a big, bold and

Allen Meadows Burghound 94 "There is good richness and vitality though to the overtly muscular and broad-shouldered flavors that ooze a palate coating extract on the explosive and incredibly long finish. It's interesting how such a large-scaled wine can retain such a fine sense of underlying

Burghound 90 "This notably ripe effort is not quite as aromatically elegant as the En Cruches though there is good complexity to the ever-so-mildly exotic yellow fruit and honey nuances. The medium weight flavors are even richer, more concentrated and brimming with dry extract that buffers the

Allen Meadows Burghound 92 " A background hint of oak toast does not significantly detract from the stone, lemon and orange peel notes that add nuance to the elegant and airy white flower aromas that gracefully introduce rich and citrusy flavors that possess ample minerality on the complex and